Cryptic crossword No 3,460

Well done Four5tring, this is much tighter. Nice echo motif tying it all together and a good level of difficulty. Some of the surfaces more convincing than others but good that you are focusing on getting the grammar right at this stage. I thought the following clues were particularly good: 6a, 11a, 23a, 3d, 15d, 16d, & 17d. A couple of quibblets but hopefully only one reply’s worth!